In a message dated 8/7/01 10:49:39, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
<<2) Surely someone in the stadium or on the track would know the difference
between a strong headwind and a tailwind... Anyone who was there have an
opinion on what really happened? Throwing out a junior record only seems
fair if they knew that it was *not* a headwind. If it was a mild headwind
or no wind, then it would logically be a record regardless. If some
tailwind was detected, then there would be no way of knowing just how
strong.>>
The announcing crew certainly knew after a couple of races, and Bob Hersh
quickly made the fact known over the PA. That sent the technicians scurrying,
I can tell you that! Unfortunately, they were unable to effect a fix in time.
Having said that, I should note that this is a funky building in the wind
department, and at one time yesterday, the women's long jump final on the
east side was recording tailwinds of more than 3mps while the homestretch had
winds of 0.x, both postive and negative. And there's no doubt in our minds
that both sets of readings were correct. Since the structure isn't symmetric,
you get some great swirl in there, and the two sides of the stadium don't
have remotely equal winds.
gh
ps--there seems to be consensus among the sport's leading statisticians that
the 100 marks will be carried as legal on the yearly and all-time lists, even
if Lewis-Francis won't get credit for a World Junior Record. (Which is a good
thing, even if sad, because the integrity of the record-ratification process
must be maintained)
